| 1 | 1 | | 25 LC 33 9766 |
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| 2 | 2 | | Senate Bill 80 |
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| 3 | 3 | | By: Senators Summers of the 13th, Kennedy of the 18th, Anavitarte of the 31st, Harbison of |
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| 4 | 4 | | the 15th, Walker III of the 20th and others |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | To amend Code Section 31-8-9.1 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to |
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| 8 | 8 | | 1 |
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| 9 | 9 | | eligibility to receive tax credits, so as to revise the definition of "rural hospital organization";2 |
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| 10 | 10 | | to provide for related matters; to provide for an effective date and applicability; to repeal3 |
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| 11 | 11 | | conflicting laws; and for other purposes.4 |
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| 12 | 12 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:5 |
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| 13 | 13 | | SECTION 1.6 |
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| 14 | 14 | | Code Section 31-8-9.1 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to eligibility to7 |
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| 15 | 15 | | receive tax credits, is amended by revising paragraph (3) of subsection (a) as follows:8 |
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| 16 | 16 | | "(3) 'Rural hospital organization' means an acute care hospital or rural freestanding |
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| 17 | 17 | | 9 |
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| 18 | 18 | | emergency department licensed by the department pursuant to Article 1 of Chapter 7 of10 |
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| 19 | 19 | | this title that:11 |
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| 20 | 20 | | (A) Has its primary campus Provides inpatient hospital services at a facility located in12 |
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| 21 | 21 | | a rural county or is a critical access hospital;13 |
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| 22 | 22 | | (B) Participates in both Medicaid and medicare Medicare and accepts both Medicaid14 |
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| 23 | 23 | | and medicare Medicare patients;15 |
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| 24 | 24 | | (C) Provides health care services to indigent patients;16 |
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| 25 | 25 | | S. B. 80 |
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| 26 | 26 | | - 1 - 25 LC 33 9766 |
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| 27 | 27 | | (D) Has at least 10 percent of its annual net revenue categorized as indigent care, |
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| 28 | 28 | | 17 |
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| 29 | 29 | | charity care, or bad debt;18 |
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| 30 | 30 | | (E) Annually files IRS Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax,19 |
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| 31 | 31 | | with the department, or for any hospital not required to file IRS Form 990, the20 |
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| 32 | 32 | | department will provide a form that collects the same information to be submitted to the21 |
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| 33 | 33 | | department on an annual basis;22 |
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| 34 | 34 | | (F) Is operated by a county or municipal authority pursuant to Article 4 of Chapter 723 |
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| 35 | 35 | | of this title or is designated as a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the24 |
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| 36 | 36 | | Internal Revenue Code;25 |
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| 37 | 37 | | (G) Is current with all audits and reports required by law; and26 |
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| 38 | 38 | | (H) Has a three-year average patient margin, as a percent of expense, less than one27 |
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| 39 | 39 | | standard deviation above the state-wide three-year average of organizations defined in28 |
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| 40 | 40 | | subparagraphs (A) through (G) of this paragraph, as calculated by the department. For29 |
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| 41 | 41 | | purposes of this subparagraph, the term 'patient margin' means gross patient revenues30 |
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| 42 | 42 | | less contractual adjustments, bad debt, indigent and charity care, other uncompensated31 |
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| 43 | 43 | | care, and total expenses."32 |
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| 44 | 44 | | SECTION 2.33 |
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| 45 | 45 | | All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.34 |
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| 46 | 46 | | S. B. 80 |
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| 47 | 47 | | - 2 - |
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